‘Institutionalised’ inmate helped spark Parklea prison riot

One of the inmates responsible for a destructive riot at a Sydney prison has been described as “institutionalised” by a sentencing judge.

Stuart John Wells was among several inmates who climbed onto the roof of Parklea Correctional Centre in Sydney’s west on 12 July, 2021.

All up, 41 prisoners would become involved in the riot which followed – lighting fires, assaulting a corrections officer and causing roughly $8 million worth of damage.

For his role, to which he pleaded guilty, Mr Wells received an additional two months imprisonment until he is eligible for parole in 2025.

During a sentence hearing on Monday, Sydney’s District Court heard that during the riot Mr Wells snapped the leg off a table to create a weapon.

He also admitted to throwing books and curtains onto an already lit fire in order to make it larger.

The now 29-year-old was one of a small group who initially refused to take directions from a corrective officer as tensions over Covid-19 and lockdowns flared.

According to court documents, the officer was escorting an inmate to the prison yard when four other men pushed past her as she opened the gate.

“These actions were swift and direct and there was planning involved,” Judge Paul Conlon said in sentencing Wells.

Court documents stated the group “ran” to the officer’s stations and climbed a fence to access the roof via a skylight.

Once on the roof, Wells and others began throwing items to the inmates below, prompting officers to declare a “code black”.

The court was told inmates were “yelling, screaming and arming themselves with weapons” causing fear and alarm for prison officers and other inmates.

The court also heard Wells had spent most of his adult life behind bars and had barely set foot outside of jail for roughly the past decade.

Judge Conlon said there was little doubt Mr Wells had become institutionalised.

He noted the extent of the damage done during the riot was vast and came at great cost to the taxpayer.

“Clearly, the upshot of the riot was that there was considerable damage done to the facility and that necessitated a large amount of work and public funds to return it to working order,” he said.

In taking into account Mr Wells’ background, Judge Conlon described it as “very sad” and obviously a major contributing factor towards his ongoing issues with the law.

The court heard that after being raised by his mother, Mr Wells was taken hostage by his biological father at a young age, and was part of a siege in which his aunt was almost killed.

The court also heard Mr Wells’ stepfather was a violent alcoholic and allegedly would regularly physically assault him.

Mr Wells told authorities his first period behind bars was the result of fighting back against his stepfather and injuring him.

Judge Conlon described Mr Wells’ childhood as “traumatic and disadvantaged”.

Throughout his teenage years, Mr Wells was heard to have used cannabis, ice, heroin and xanax, and still struggles with substance abuse issues.

The court heard Mr Wells described prison as the environment he, “understands best and has had the most influence on him”.

Mr Wells was sentenced to an additional year behind bars, backdated to add another two months to his term.